A religion writer began a recent interview with a question I hadn't heard since I became presiding bishop: "What is the role of retired people in the ELCA?" I shouldn't have been surprised. I was in Roanoke, Va., to meet pastors who have served in the office of bishop. The gathering's theme was "Evoking Vocation."
My response to the reporter wasn't particularly profound. But this is what I wish I would have said.
Those who are retired can teach us the difference between our vocation as the baptized and our occupations. We tend to identify ourselves on the basis of what we do. But our baptism reminds us whose we are.
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